When I was 23, my workshop landlord Brian gave me an unforgettable piece of advice.

I was just starting to out and eager to get plenty of work in. Taking on every job and pricing it cheap enough that I won every bid. I had been running myself ragged trying to keep all of my customers happy. 

But, like most beginners, I was making a lot of mistakes: 

As cashflow was tight I would use lower quality materials, but they would always have defects and would need replacing sooner.

Because I underpriced the job to win it, I would rush to finish it and make an error. So the job would take longer.

The first mistake would mean I was delayed in starting the next job so I would have to call to postpone it.

Until one day, Brian said to me:

"Do what you said you would do, when you said you would do it."

That day, my whole life changed.

I realised that the customer wasn’t paying for me to fit their new kitchen. They were paying for the new hub of the home to prepare all of their family meals, host dinner parties, have friends over, eat breakfast every day, bake with their children for years to come.

Moving forward I decided to drastically change my approach.

I spent more time on my pricing to make sure I was competitive but not cheap. I used higher quality materials so I had less call backs for damaged parts. I had enough money in my jobs that I could schedule them properly. By not having to rush I would make less mistakes and even finish jobs early. I even managed to fit some of my next jobs ahead of schedule much to my customers delight.